How Difficulty Can Make You Better Not Bitter

Difficulty Can Make You Better, Not Bitter

Read a devotional from God's Dream for Your Life by Rick Warren.  It began with the phrase Life is not fair.  Have you ever felt that way?  Maybe it seems as if your life is full of difficulties, problems, and hurts.   They can make you better or bitter.  You will either grow up or give up. You can become who God wants you to be or you can let your heart become hard.  You have a choice to how you will respond to the tough times in your life. 

As you go through the difficulties of life, you change. What is important is what happens in you not what happens to you.  Why?  Because it builds your character, and your character is what you take with you into eternity, not the circumstances. 

In Acts 27: 15-20 - you learn three ways you shouldn't respond. 

1.  Don't drift - verse 15:  "The ship was caught by the storm and could not head into the wind; so we gave way to it and were driven along".  This ship carrying Paul and the other prisoners was in the middle of the Mediterranean and hadn't seen the sun for 14 days.  They didn't have any means to get their bearings, so they began to drift. 

Some people during difficult times begin to drift through their lives. They have no goals, or purpose, or ambition, or dreams for their lives.  Today we would say they are coasting, but there is a problem with coasting. They will be headed downhill.   Can't coast through life. Don't lose your ambition or your dreams. 

2.  Don't discard -verse 18: "We took such a violent battering from the storm that the next day they began to throw the cargo overboard."  The storm was so tough, that they had to lighten the load. So they threw away things they needed: cargo, tackle and food. 

When storms of life become unbearable, people tend to abandon values, and relationships. They give up on their marriages, and dreams.   God says to "Stay with the ship."  If you don't you will always be tempted to walk  or run away. To build character you must stay on board.  It is never God's will to run from a difficult situation. God wants you to learn, grow, and develop. Stick with it. 

3.  Don't despair - verse 20: "We finally gave up all hope of being saved".  After 14 days, giving up their cargo, tackle and food, the passengers finally gave up hope. They had forgotten that even a storm is in God's control. He hasn't left you. And if you feel that God is far from you, guess who moved?  

God is always with you in the storm and he will help you through it, if you TRUST HIM. 

Remember God loves you and so do I. 

JESUS KNOWS HOW YOU FEEL

JESUS Knows How You Feel

“Jesus saw the huge crowd as he stepped from the boat, and he had compassion on them and healed their sick.”

‭‭Matthew‬ ‭14:14‬ ‭NLT‬‬

You are over whelmed. You have more to do than is humanly possible.  You continually give to others who never give anything in return. Your teenagers won't listen and if you are a teacher your students won't try.  Jesus knows how you feel.  You are precious to Jesus, so precious that he became like you, so that you would come to him. 

When you struggle he will listen. When you yearn he will respond to you. When you question he will hear. Jesus has been there. 

I am going to share a story with you. You may have heard it before, but it is worth hearing again.   A boy went into a pet store, looking for a puppy. The store owner showed the boy a litter of puppies in a box. The boy looked at the puppies. He carefully picked up each one, examined it and put it back in the box. After several minutes, he walked up to the store owner and said, "I picked one out. How much will it cost?"  The store owner gave him a price and the boy promised to be back in a few days with the money. "Don't take long," the store owner said, "Puppies like these sell quickly."  The boy smiled , "I'm not worried," he said, "Mine will still be here."

The boy went to work - weeding, washing windows, cleaning yards.  He worked hard and saved his money. When he had enough for the puppy he returned to the store.   He walked up to the counter and laid down his money.  The store owner counted the money, verifying the amount, smiled and said, "All right, son, you can go get your puppy."  

The boy reached into the box, pulled out a skinny dog with a limp leg and started to leave. The owner stopped him. "Don't take that puppy, he is crippled. He can't play. He'll never run with you or play fetch. Get one of the healthy pups."

"No thank you, sir. This is exactly the kind of dog I've been looking for", said the boy.  As the boy turned to leave, the owner started to speak, but remained silent.  Suddenly he understood, for extending from the bottom of the boys trousers was a brace - a brace for the boy's crippled leg. 

Why did the boy want the dog?  Because he knew how it felt and he knew this sweet puppy was very special.   JESUS KNOWS HOW YOU FEEL!

Remember God loves you and so do I.